The Fullmers

Christmas 2011

2012-01-21T10:13:00.000-08:00

Eric was completely and totally spoiled for Christmas!! And so were we! We were blown away by how good our families were too us, they went way overboard, as always. :)

Eric posing in front of the Fullmer tree Christmas morning

Helping Grandma Fullmer open presents

Why are we doing this over and over again? I just opened the last one for you!

We went to church with my family and it was so great! Eric looked so cute in his new church outfit, which I forgot to take a picture of, and was such a good boy. Then we came back to eat some yummy breakfast quiche and examine our loot.

Getting teased by uncle Dillon putting a girl hat on him. It also might have been he was jealous of Dillon's long, thick hair.

The traditional coming down the stairs to see what Santa brought

Posing in his sweet new monkey backpack-he knows he's cool

This one is from....

My gorgeous sisters Meg and Madi

New shoes!

He LOVED his new giraffe pillow pet


I love that cowlick-his little hair is always like that

Afterwards, we went over to Nana Manuel's house for even more fun toys! Eric didn't know what to do with himself!

He loves this ball and plays with it almost every day!

Eric loves his Nana!

Hooray for presents! Especially new clothes!

Me with my brothers Andrew and Dillon in our fancy new hoodies

We had a crazy, fun-filled, wonderful day and were so grateful to be able to spend it with our families.

Fullmer Christmas Eve Party

2012-01-21T09:22:00.000-08:00

Every year Tanner's Grandma and Grandpa Fullmer host an annual Christmas Eve party. We talk, laugh, eat lots of yummy food like ham and cheesy potatoes with Tanner's mom's amazing rolls, watch the kids do a nativity play (which I lamely forgot to take a picture of) while Aly reads Luke 2, listen to his grandparents read the Christmas story-parallel with the crucifixion-it makes me cry every time, play games, and open Christmas jammies for the kiddos. Aly, I know you're just cringing at that run-on sentence right, probably just threw up a little, but I'm too lazy to fix it. Aly is an English major/whiz/genius, for those of you who didn't know.


All three Fullmer grandkids (so far..), Eric, Noelle, and Mikey

Decked out in his swell Christmas onesie

I just love Eric's hammy face in this one

He looks so much like Tanner sometimes, it just makes me laugh

Cute cousin Mikey, what a chub!

Eric LOVED Aunt Aly-and still does. So, I should say LOVES Aunt Aly

All the babies-can you believe Mikey is 5 months YOUNGER than Eric?? I thought Eric was big!

Eric, Mikey, Brinlee, and Avery

Mikey is always happy!

Huh???

Noelle and her second cousin(?) Alivia

Rockin' their new Christmas jammies from Grandma Fullmer

Santa bum

Fullmers always wear super cool ugly sweaters for Christmas parties! Dad's lights up! If you look closely at Tanner's you'll see where he glued bells on his-he did a little shimmy dance for us before the party that had us all cracking up and a little weirded out

Getting loves from Noelle

Taylor was full of hot expressions that night

Eric was oblivious to the weirdness going on..

Tay hijacked our camera-as punishment, I posted the proof

my personal favorite

Had to get a shot with Mitt! (Grandpa Fullmer really likes Mitt Romney)

Of course blogger put these all out of order, but here they are. We had a great time, it was wonderful to see all the extended Fullmer family!

Utah 2011-Part 1

2012-01-07T12:44:00.000-08:00

We were lucky enough to be able to fly back to Utah for a week to see our families during Christmas. It was a whirlwind of a trip, but we had so much fun. And it was so great for Eric to see all his wonderful grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends. He definitely missed everyone after we got home. We got there on a Thursday and left the next Friday. Eric was so cute on the plane and did so great. He loved looking at the people around him and getting them to smile at him. If someone walked past without looking at him, he would stare at them like "hey, don't you realize how cute I am?" He is such a fun age right now.
When we got to Utah, he was immediately passed all around and handled it so great. We ran from house to house to see everyone and they were all so good to us. Here are the pictures from the first couple days we were there:


Daddy and Eric watching the planes come in during our Vegas layover on our way there

Poor Eric was so exhausted he just slumped over and fell asleep like this


Trying out the reindeer antlers

Eric's cousin Mikey

This was our first time meeting Mikey and he was worth the wait! Such a sweet, happy boy and always smiling! We loved playing with him.

Cousin Noelle

We've missed Noelle, she is so big now and we had so much fun playing with her!!

Playing with Aunt Madi

Eric loved playing with my parents' tree.

Trying on the Christmas jammies-and the bows he kept pulling off the presents

Hey, what's that?

Playing with Nana

Uncle Drew

More to come soon!

Eric's First Christmas

2012-01-07T08:50:00.000-08:00

We hope everyone had a merry Christmas, we sure did! It was Eric's first and though he doesn't look it in this picture, he loved it all. He loved playing with the decorations, lighting up the tree at night, and did pretty well at opening his presents! We went and spent the holiday with our family back in Utah, so we had our own little Christmas the day before we left.


Not a flattering picture of us, but we had just woken up and it's the only one we took

Eric loved the ripping part..

Hey, there's something inside here! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Embreus!


Examining his new books from Mommy and Daddy

Wow Dad, those are some nice shoes!

It was so fun to see Eric's reaction as he experienced everything from Christmas. It will be so fun next year too because he won't remember anything from this year, so it will be new again. Christmas went by too fast this year, after we got back home, Tanner said, "I'm sad it's already over, but I'm excited for next Christmas!" That's Tanner for ya. I wish things weren't so busy so I could take more time to remember the birth of the Savior and remember what Christmas is all about, but I have felt the spirit so much and my testimony has grown. We are so thankful to have Eric and feel so blessed just having our little family, I know I say it a lot, but we couldn't ask for anything more!

Can't believe Christmas is almost here!

2011-12-11T13:46:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago Eric and I got to go with our friends the Cardons, Ashley and her kids Cal and Tinsley, to the Milwaukee Zoo. Let me tell you, it is awesome! There are tons of animals and it is huge! Way bigger than the one we were used to in Utah. It was pretty chilly, but Eric held up really well and looked at the animals way more than I expected! I was a slacker though and forgot to take pictures of all of us together. We're grateful for fun new friends and excited to hang out with them some more!

Eric's face when he saw the elephant

Perfect timing, it started peeing right after I took this one

Cal and Eric-so cute together

Eric and mommy

I love this little man

Happy Thanksgiving! Sadly, the only picture I remembered to take

Helping decorate the tree the day after Thanksgiving

Our friends Jack and Diana took us to the Domes. They are three domes--one has a tropical habitat, one is desert, and the third one they are always changing. This time we went it was a Christmas display with tons of different poinsettia plants.

Eric and Jack in Santa's sleigh

These were the best pictures we could get before they dove right back out

Eric loved all the plants

So fascinated

Rockin' his Christmas jammies

Look how long my hair is!

Cheeser

He just started this little grin where he scrunches up his nose-too cute

Candy cane bliss

When Tanner was little, he loved Christmas so much, his family called him Christmas boy. We are so excited now to have a little Christmas boy of our own! I think he looks excited, don't you? We are trying to soak up all of this holiday season and enjoy every minute, despite Tanner's crazy school schedule. We are so thankful for our many blessings and our wonderful friends and family. And most of all for our Savior Jesus Christ and the opportunity we have to celebrate his birth and his Atonement for us. We leave for Utah in 11 days and are so excited to spend this special time with our families and loved ones!

Just hear those sleigh bells ringaling..

2011-11-30T08:37:00.001-08:00

Christmas is almost here!! We are so excited and loving every minute. We just wish it could be a month longer. The decorations, Christmas tree, lights, music, and hot chocolate, they're all so wonderful. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our friends the Ostlers and the Lloyds. Eric enjoyed the sweet potatoes and also some strawberry Jello, other than that, he wasn't too into the dinner. We are slackers of course and forgot to take any pictures. I am ashamed. We have so much to be thankful for though, this Thanksgiving was a big reminder to me of that. We are so blessed and Tanner and I keep saying how we couldn't ask for anything more.

Eric is growing so fast and as you can see is our little ham for the camera. I love how he stops and poses with this cheesy grin. Tanner and his dad both do this close lipped smile, maybe it's hereditary? He looks just like his handsome daddy and I love it! He is such a sweet boy and is doing fun new things every day. He now loves to cuddle and make a cute little giggle sound, he does it to his stuffed animals too, he loves cars and trucks, balls, watching Elmo, watching mom and dad dance, high fives (this is more like patting my hand a few times, but still cute), claps, turning off the lights when we leave the room, turning the pages for mommy when we read books, and our new favorite: the army crawl! I finally got a video of it this morning. There are so many things I love about it, the way he uses his whole head to propel himself, the butt in the air as he inchworms, and the random way his left leg flies in the air. I'm sure he'll be crawling and into everything soon enough!
He doesn't like getting stuck under the couch, getting dressed, or any kind of meat. Even baby food with meat in it, he hates it all. He is still toothless, so it's probably good.

Aren't you so grateful I'm so cute?

Won't use his sippy, but he loves drinking from our cups

Here he is making noise and yelling, which is what he now does all day.
Below that is his face when we lit up the Christmas tree. I love his expression so much, he is just so amazed.
Lastly, the army crawl! He'll be 10 months on Saturday, so it's about time, but I still can't believe how fast he is changing!

2011-11-16T20:06:00.001-08:00

Playing with Daddy is always so much fun!

If I can just get there....hey an Elmo phone! He's easily distracted. He's a baby, go easy on him.

Spazzing out with the butter box I gave him to play with while I made dinner.

All we have to do to get him to smile now is smile at him. I love it! I just smiled at him and he made this adorably cheesy face, he's such a cheeseball! I love how he acts bashful too.

Eric's alternative to crawling. Instead of moving forward, he rolls side to side, which gets him forward about a centimeter at a time. I love how he'll come back to his belly and look around like he expects to be in a different place. Someday he'll figure it out.

I love listening to Eric's voice. Today he was rolling around in his Utes tracksuit talking up a storm, I couldn't resist recording him. We sure love this little guy!

Hey Mom, look how great I can stand!

Busted the little couch potato stealing the remote-granted his stories were on (aka Sesame Street)

Hey! I have hair!

Cute fuzzy head

Snuggle time with Daddy

Oct 2011

2011-11-16T19:31:00.001-08:00

Eric laughing at his puppy

Eric likes to throw fits when he gets fed veggies he doesn't like-so how could I not keep feeding them to him? it's hilarious!

I surrender!

Babbling/yelling

You can guess what he's doing-I just love his motivational little clap in the middle-way to push through it Eric!

9 months!

2011-11-10T12:10:00.001-08:00

Eric had his 9 month appointment last week. He is healthy and perfect (as we already knew!). His stats are:

Weight- 21 lb 4 oz -75%

Height- 29.5 in -75%

Head- 90% :)

He still isn't crawling and still is toothless, both of which the doctor said are fine. We love our round headed, gummy little butterball! He does have a bad cough, so we took him in today and he was wheezing a little so they gave him an inhaler for when he coughs a lot at night. They gave him a nebulizer treatment in the office too. He was so good and sat still almost the whole time even though he didn't like the mask. He doesn't act sick, as you can tell:

Chowing on veggie puffs at the dr's office

And I just had to add this one from the other day because it's so cute I could spray my face with ketchup. And I hate hate hate ketchup. But it's that cute!

Bending over to look at a toy he got plumber's crack-I love this stinkin' nutcase!

Eric at 8 months

2011-10-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

Eric is getting to be such a big boy! He is changing every day and is so much fun. He is so crazy when he sleeps now, we find him in a different corner of the crib every time he lays down. He falls asleep like this, with his left arm under him. The other day I think it fell asleep because he woke up crying and couldn't get himself off his tummy. I picked him up and his little arm was all limp. It was sad, but funny.

Here he is with his jammies and toy from Grandma Embreus. It scared him at first, but now you can see he loves it!

"I wonder if that fuzzy spider on his head tastes good.."

Eating his carrots. And this is a pretty clean day actually.

I just love this picture. It was after our morning walk. He looks so pensive and happy. I also especially love the long hair behind his ears that is blowing in the wind. Tanner won't let me cut it, he thinks it's cute.

Practicing crawling. We have to put him in this position and he lasts maybe a minute and goes on the tummy, then promptly rolls to his back. I don't think he has the arm strength to support that heavy head yet! He'll figure it out eventually, I'm not worried about it, it's actually nice right now that he can't move all over and get into things. But I can tell he's getting frustrated about not being more mobile, so I kind of want him to start at the same time.

Wearing Grandma Fullmer's sunglasses. He knows he looks good!

Listening to Daddy. I love when he gets this serious face.

At Costco with Jack and Kenzie. I got this picture of him with Kenzie, they kept their arms on eachother like this for a few minutes, it was so funny.

Eric is getting more picky with his eating. He used to simply open wide and eat anything we offered him, but now if he doesn't like it after one or two bites, he just closes his mouth and it is ridiculous to try and get him to open it again. If Tanner and I are eating it though, he will eat whatever it is. He is babbling all the time and says 'dadada' but doesn't get what it means yet. Every time I try to get him to say 'mama' Tanner runs in and starts saying 'dada.'
He is starting to get a little more clingy to Tanner and I. He is rolling a lot and will probably be crawling by next month. He still is toothless and is so cute gumming all of his food. He loves singing, when mommy or daddy dance, balls, books, the vacuum, mirrors, fake laughing, blankie, swinging, smiling, yelling, clapping, elmo, watching football with Tanner, and bathtime. He doesn't like other kids crying, getting dressed, or getting strapped into the carseat.
We love our little stinknut!!

Happy birthday Tanner!

2011-10-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

Tanner turned the big 2 6 last week! It was sad because he had to spend the day studying, but that night we gave him presents, went to Kopp's for dinner, had caramel apple pie in a bag for dessert, and watched a movie. His parents watched Eric while we went to dinner and a movie the night before. I felt so bad that he couldn't enjoy the whole day, but I hope he still had a great birthday. He is the best husband and father and we love him so much! Thank you Tanner for being so amazing! I love you!

Eric wanted to help open the presents.

His new MCW hat and he got Home Alone, his favorite Christmas movie.

On Sunday I made an official birthday cake. Tanner requested Better than S** (this is a family blog now) Cake.

Eric was amazed by all the candles. I love the look on his face.

Keeping Eric from grabbing the last few lit candles. Tanner must be getting old, it took him 4 tries to get them out! :)

We are so lucky to have Tanner, he is the sweetest, hardest working, most loving man I know. Happy birthday love!

Visit from Grandma and Grandpa Fullmer

2011-10-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Fullmer came to see us for the weekend last week! It was so much fun to see them and Eric absolutely loved all the attention. We are so grateful for them (and my parents) and all they do for us. Here are some of the fun things we did:

We went to Holy Hill, a huge basilica that is located at the highest elevation point in Wisconsin. It was a beautiful church, a perfect day, and such a pretty view of all the fall colors when you got to the top tower (though I don't think Pa was all that excited about being in the top tower). Sadly, Tanner couldn't come on our outings because he had exams and had to study, but we still had a lot of fun.
Eric was comfortably carried by Pa the whole excursion, I love him on his shoulders.

I love that face!

He was hamming it up to all the other people visiting. It was really windy at the top, as you can see.

He loved grabbing the bars. See all the pretty fall colors outside?

He just looks huge in this picture, it's like carrying a bowling ball, he's so heavy!

The church from the ground.

Contemplating the meaning of life....

Inside the church, it was beautiful.

Eric's first oreo, thanks to Damin (Grandma) and Pa. :) I'm pretty sure most of it ended up on his face rather than in his mouth.

Pa loved sneaking Eric sips of Diet Coke....

Sitting in front of the pumpkins at the apple orchard

"Another face cutout thing?? You guys, this is so humiliating!" Eric hated this part as you can see, so naturally, we had to take pictures.

The little lip came out.

Pa bought him a horse ride, it was the funniest, cutest thing ever. Eric didn't know what to make of it.

"What the heck am I sitting on?"

"Why is it moving?"

Look at that little cowboy staring off into the sunset..

Reaching his limit....

And done..if you look closely you see he was starting to cry.

Dinner at Kopp's, yum!

What a lucky boy to have such awesome grandparents!

Love this one!

We had so much fun, it went by too fast. Thanks for coming to visit us, we hope they come again soon!

The past couple weeks

2011-09-25T19:44:00.000-07:00

Eric is now reaching and sitting up better and better. It was like one day it clicked and he realized he was able to reach and grab things for himself. It is so much fun watching him learn and grow so much, so fast.

Playing with his ball from his toy Grandma Embreus gave him. He loves balls and watching them roll and bounce. He just gets sad that he pushes them away and can't go get them for himself yet. He hasn't started crawling yet, but he is a big boy, so I think it's going to take him a little longer.

Trying on his Halloween jammies from Grandma Embreus, so cute!

The hair. There's a nice tuft right on the crown of his head, it's a cute strawberry blonde color and is getting long enough on the sides he has little long hairs over his ears like an old man, it's so cute.

Wearing Daddy's hat the day of the BYU/Ute game. Notice he is wearing red, he knows what team to root for!

He is a Packer fan too, look at him representin'.

He loves his baths, and I love those cute rolls!

Look closely and you'll see the tuft of hair.

Cutest baby ever!

I put him to bed lying with his head at the top of the crib (the left of picture) and he ends up all over the place. Here are some pictures from last night.

Arm tucked under himself and butt in air, naturally.

Looking studly for church today, he knows how to work a button up shirt and some khakis!

He is so much fun, here are some of the fun things he is doing:

He is learning to clap, he can't make noise yet, but still so cute.
Babbling. He talks all the time and is starting to move his mouth like he trying to say something. The other day he copied Tanner and said 'dada', though we don't count it because he hasn't said it since.
Sometimes he can put his food in his mouth all by himself! It sounds silly, but I was so proud.

Tanner's nickname for Eric is 'stinknut' or 'stinkin' nutcase' and it is hilarious. Every time Tanner gets home from school and asks where his stinkin' nutcase is, I can't stop laughing and Eric gets the biggest smile. Who knew such a little guy could make our lives so much fun?

Our silly boy

2011-09-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

Eric is such a giggly boy, he is always laughing. Especially when he gets tired. After church today, we were sitting on the cough and Tanner jokingly kicked my foot and Eric went nuts. I don't know why, but he loved it, as you can see. He's such a cutie!

The cheapest toy you'll ever buy

2011-09-12T15:23:00.001-07:00

I was cutting up potatoes for dinner and handed Eric this paper towel to entertain himself for a couple minutes. I had to stop and get the camera because he was laughing so hard, don't ask me why, but it was hilarious. Sorry about the sound at the beginning, I don't know why it does that sometimes, but the rest is totally worth it. He just has the funniest laugh I've ever heard, I've never heard one like it. I just love this kid, can I say that enough??

Crazy cute

2011-09-12T08:55:00.000-07:00

Eric trying mango for the first time, as you can see, he is not a fan.

Playing with his new toy from Grandma Embreus! He loves watching it, but is scared of the noise it makes when you turn it on, sad, but funny.

Here is the visual of his love of hitting things together. Give him two toys and this is what happens. I love it when he randomly waves his right arm the wrong way and hits the pillow and looks confused for a minute; also love that he blinks furiously while they hit.

Some more toy hitting action.

This is our neighbors' daughter Kenzie. She is two weeks younger than Eric, though he looks twice as big! She is such a sweet little girl and they were so cute playing together. They suddenly noticed each other and it was adorable. I love how Eric starts flirting and looking a little bashful. Then he plays it cool at the end and grabs a monkey and stuffs it in his mouth.

I love how he examines the car so intently. He does this now a lot with his hands too, he loves to wave them around and stare at them.

Laughing at Sheboygan.

His new lovie, the monkey that plays 'twinkle twinkle.' I think he recognizes the tune 'cause we sing it a lot, it's so cute how he hugs it!

Plethora of pictures of a perfect, pudgy pseven month old

2011-09-12T08:25:00.000-07:00

These are all out of order, but anywho, Eric is seven months old! It makes me a little sad to think that he is already past the halfway mark to being one. He is so fun and getting so much personality. Some of his favorites are:

Hitting things together, it makes a fun sound. Except when I gave him some bread the other day; he tried hitting it together and looked rather disappointed at how lame the sound effects were.
Talking, laughing, or yelling really loudly.
Still loves the Sheboygan. But now he also loves a toy monkey that plays 'Twinkle, twinkle' and gives it loves.
His blankie, even though it's already starting to get nasty.
Medicine. :S Whenever he seems like he isn't feeling good and I give him Tylenol or Motrin, he opens right up, then opens up again for more. I have to hide it very sneakily or he gets mad.
He loves eating whatever we eat. He still has no teeth and has to gum everything, but he doesn't care; if we're eating it, he should eat it too.
Singing. He loves when we sing to him, especially songs with hand motions, he goes nuts.
Being naked. The picture above is getting naked for the bath-he thinks it's the greatest. See that smile? It's because he knows he's getting naked.
Pinching. Not that he means to, but he'll grab Tanner's face and just pinch it and laugh. I think he likes the texture of his beard and tries to grab it.

Things he Doesn't like:
The vacuum. Or any other noisy appliance, like the mixer, blender, or electric can opener. He has to be held and reassured while the noise is happening, otherwise he starts to cry.
Green beans or mangoes. Hates them both. Guess we'll try again later.

Here we are at Costco with his new friend Jack. Jack is 11 months old and is a big boy like Eric. Eric has just started noticing Jack within the last few weeks. I think it started when Jack sat on Eric not long ago.
Watching college football. We actually don't have the tv on very much since we don't have cable, but when it is on, he just zones out.
Loves the bath! He's finally able to sit up in it now and starting to play with toys, it's so fun.
He recognizes the camera now and will often pose for it, it is so funny. I wanted to get a shot of this cute outfit, that was too small, but I took a picture anyway, and he immediately smiles and leans in.
Wait, could you try this angle too?

Trying the sippy. He doesn't get that he has to tip it back to get what's inside, so I have to help him, but he knows how to get it to his mouth. He still doesn't like water and lets it all dribble out all over his chin, but at least he doesn't make a face like it's poison anymore.

He takes mealtimes very seriously as you can see.
More tv. I have only turned on Sesame Street twice because he's usually sleeping while it's on, but both times he sat for a good twenty minutes and watched it.
His cheesy grin, I love it! And I just love those dimples!

Quiet moments..

2011-08-28T20:14:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here in my living room, listening to the clock ticking and thinking about how messy our apartment is and what I want to get done tomorrow. But as I sit here, I can't resist the urge to go in and peek in on Eric sleeping. I don't know what it is about a sleeping baby, but there really isn't anything more precious. I feel like I could just sit and watch him for hours. I wonder what he is dreaming about, cuddles, endless streams of milk, playing, or his newest discovery, sink faucets?

I leave the room and sit down and can't help but feel overwhelmed with gratitude and love. I hear Tanner in the other room studying his smartypants little heart out and am reminded as well how much I love him. I think, "what would my life be without them?" I am so blessed. The Spirit fills my heart and I ponder further; I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus Christ. The knowledge of His plan is what has brought this great joy into my life. I can't imagine going through life without the gospel.

Every time I look into these beautiful blue eyes and giggle with him about his cheerio covered face, I feel pure happiness. I know even more in my heart that our Heavenly Father loves us and that because of the blessings of the temple we will be together forever--this brings a peace to my soul that I can't describe. I am beginning to realize why the scriptures tell us to love others and serve them to draw nearer to the Savior, because serving my family has been the most rewarding and sacred experience of my life. The most special moments I remember were always when I was loving and serving someone else. I feel a renewed sense of faith and motivation to follow His will and always remember Him.

Thankful doesn't seem a strong enough word to describe how I feel, but it is how I feel as I sit and ponder and my soul is filled with peace.

Eric's little goat laugh..or evil villain laugh, I'm not sure which

2011-08-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

2011-08-28T14:30:00.000-07:00

2011-08-19T10:30:00.000-07:00

Eric is now 6 1/2 months old, it's amazing how fast he's changing. He's still our happy boy, though he's decided he's not really into the whole napping thing, so instead of 2 good naps, he takes 3 'crapnaps' as I like to call them, because not long after, he starts feeling tired. But he still sleeps about 11 hours at night, so we can't complain. Here he is in all his baseball outfit glory, showing off his sitting skills like a little champ.

This blankie from my friend Rachel is his favorite. I like it because he loves to pull his blankets over his face while he sleeps and it is thin enough he can breathe through it. Some mornings I come in and it's wrapped around his head, not even on his body. It also has fun uses, such as a hat/shawl thing:

Or a turban:

He also loves to suck on his blanket and other fabric. I don't know what he loves about it, but he does. He even sucks his thumb sometimes, but only with his blanket over it so he sucks it through the blankie. If he wears long sleeves, he'll catch his thumb under it and suck on it. It's so cute. Here is Daddy trying to compete with Eric for a nibble on the blanket.

I went in the other room to put something away and came back and found this:

Tolerating Mommy and Daddy, who thought this was so funny.
Eric has this cute little church outfit and I was worried that he would grow out of it before he could really wear it very much, so I took some pictures. He looks like such a little stud! He also has cute little converse shoes that I love.
Standing up!

Here is a video of Eric under his blanket. I love this little fake laugh he does for us at the end.

This is Eric's growl/talking and what I listen to most of the day.

White Coat Ceremony

2011-08-19T10:12:00.000-07:00

Last week Tanner had his white coat ceremony. Med students get shorter white coats and then when you finish and become a doctor, you get one of the long white coats. There are 202 students in Tanner's class, it was so neat to watch. I am just so proud of Tanner, I can't describe how I felt watching him, so happy/excited/nervous for him! I just love this man. Above is the two of us after it was over. The pictures loaded in a weird order, like always.
They did it in groups of 8.

So proud of his daddy!

Getting the coat put on..

He looks so professional, doesn't he? The speaker was great and talked about keeping your humanity and empathy, don't let cynicism get you down about the medical field. It was really inspiring, especially to me since I work with doctors. He talked about building relationships with patients and overcoming the previous ideas that doctors know everything. He was great and I knew as we sat there that this is the perfect school for Tanner and I'm so glad we're here. What a great way to start the next four years!

Summer Fun

2011-08-11T11:25:00.000-07:00

We went to the Wisconsin State Fair this week and had a good 'ole time. The State Fair here is a much bigger production than it is in Utah, people let you pay to park on their lawns because there are so many people trying to get in. I thought it would be funny to put Eric in one of these silly picture boards. He apparently didn't find it quite as hilarious and made his most irritated face; which backfired, because it made the picture even funnier, ha!
They had a barn for little kids to look at the animals-Eric was interested for about 2 seconds, which we weren't surprised about.
These are cream puffs, which are a famous treat at the fair and was very good I must say.
Another embarrassing photo-op courtesy of mom.
Some of the weird fair food-chocolate covered bacon, which was gross (according to Tanner, I didn't try it) and deep fried butter, which I didn't try either, but it was basically just buttery deep fried batter because the butter just melts inside.
Deep fried peanut butter and jelly, this was pretty good actually, for about 2 bites.
Eric eating some cream from the cream puff. He loved it and was mad we only let him try a few licks.
I was just holding my finger out waiting for Tanner to take the picture and Eric's hands starting shaking he was getting so excited for me to put it in his mouth!
Krispy Kreme cheeseburger. I thought it sounded disgusting, but I tried a bite and it wasn't bad, just sweet and salty really. But I didn't go back for a second bite, it wasn't that good.
One of the toys kept out on the lawn. Eric loved it and just looks like such a big boy sitting up in it!
Gotta love that chubby little face.

Happy to be outside.
Tanner in his 'white coat.' Doctors get the long ones, students' are shorter.
Here are some videos of Eric. The first is him shakin' what his momma gave him. In this case it was a set of toy keys that I gave him. The next is of him eating peaches. I don't know what's funnier, the look on his face when he's eating it, or that he opens his mouth for more each time.

Happy half birthday Eric!

2011-08-03T20:36:00.000-07:00

Our little man is 6 months old today, I can't believe it! He is such a good boy and we love him so much, we can't imagine our lives without him. Here he is at his 6 month appt, which he had today. He is

18 lb 5 oz-75%

27 in-75%

He's come a long way since his wee 6 1/2 pounds! He was so cute, smiling at the doctor and trying to get him to look at him. He was so brave when he got his shots, he was really upset at first but calmed down after just a few minutes and was so good, poor guy. Our pediatrician is amazing! After only one visit I love this doctor, it was so great having a good experience after our last one wasn't so great.

Eric has learned to sit up! He can't stay up very long yet, but he does pretty well and when he gets tired he tries to keep sitting but just slowly leans farther and farther forward until his poor face is almost to the ground.
Some of the other things Eric likes or does:

Eric loves the swings. We just discovered this, he thinks they are the shizniz.

He loves to talk in his sweet, high little voice and lately he likes to stare at me and wait for me to respond before he talks again.

He still loves his Sheboygan and goes nuts laughing over it. Who knew a bright orange giraffe could bring someone so much joy?

He can roll back to front now as well, though only one direction.

He fake laughs.

He LOVES his daddy. Tanner just has to look at him and he gets the biggest grin on his face.

I don't know that he understands it really, but when we read a book, I put his hand under the page and he grabs it and turns the pages.

He HATES green beans. When we kept trying for another bite, he suddenly just burst into tears. I don't think they're all that great either.

Kicking. If Eric is upset, excited, tired, happy, whatever, he kicks those little feet.

He has officially figured out that EVERYTHING is supposed to go in his mouth. I think everything he sees he sizes up how difficult it would be to get it and chew on it.

He sleeps with his blanket over his head. I have tried to stop this, but no matter how I tuck or pull the blanket off, I come back in and it is in a pile on his face. I don't know why, but he loves it. When he is tired, I can tell because he grabs his blankie and pulls it in his face.

He loves popsicles. So much that when they are gone he cries for a good 10 minutes. After just 2 tries, we learned that he doesn't really need to eat popsicles all that often.

Lastly, this is Eric's new cousin Michael. He was born last week and is such a cutie! We only wish we could see him in person.
Happy birthday Eric, we love you!

Happy birthday Aunt Aly!

2011-07-29T08:54:00.000-07:00

Eric is clearly a little distressed realizing we won't be there to see Aly on her birthday, so he asked me to make this video. Please don't judge the baby talk, after all, he is a baby. So Happy Birthday Aly, we love you!

More Eric

2011-07-28T20:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, we're the parents that are convinced that every single thing our baby does is adorable and should be recorded. I would probably post a picture of what a good pooper he is if I got too carried away, but not to worry, I will hold back on that one (don't worry, I don't have a picture to post). But it's because he really is so dang cute! And we have the excuse that we left behind family that wants to see lots of updates on him.

Here is Eric's new talking he's been doing a lot of lately. This is actually what sound Tanner and I wake up to each morning through the monitor.

We should be more uptight about fruit, but I just up and gave Eric some cherries in his fruit net, he's about 6 months anyway. He wasn't so sure about it, but eventually loved it. He was stained all over by the time he was done.

Eric has finally learned to roll from back to tummy! At least going one direction. But it's a lot of work to get all the adorable chub moving around!

2011-07-26T09:59:00.000-07:00

Eric's first day on the swing

Eric's new thing is this silly fake laugh/cough

Eric loves oranges in his fruit net and gets really upset when they are gone

Discovering new things

2011-07-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

Some things we have discovered this week: Eric wants to be a football player. We told him he just has to wait until the football isn't bigger than he is.

Eric loves to swing! He had so much fun and looked so cute slumped against the front of it.

Highchairs are fun!!

And sweet potatoes are delicious.

But make you gassy.

2011-07-25T13:05:00.000-07:00

It has been two weeks today since we got in Milwaukee, which seems crazy to me. We miss everyone a lot, but are excited for school/work to start so we'll be busier.

I got a job! I start in 3 weeks, part-time, it will be evenings, so Tanner will watch Eric, yeah!

We have discovered frozen custard and I could gain a lot of weight out here, luckily we don't have money to buy it too often.

Eric can now almost roll onto his tummy from his back; he has also started fake laughing, which he of course, finds hilarious.

Eric is still down for his afternoon nap, which means he has been sleeping for 2.5 hours. Which makes me feel like this:

But makes Tanner so nervous he keeps sending me in to make sure he is breathing.

This picture makes me so happy it is ridiculous. He is just the cutest thing. He loves this bouncer so much, I thought he'd be getting tired of it by now. But he just jumps and kicks like crazy. The other night I youtubed some River Dance music and played it while Eric danced his happy little jig. I thought it was too clever and funny and Eric seemed to agree. Tanner just waited for me to turn off the music.

Our neighbors are amazing, I'm so grateful for nice, friendly, awesome people.

The end.

Swimming!

2011-07-21T18:54:00.000-07:00

Today we went swimming in Fred and Kathy's (our landlords) pool. It was Eric's first time swimming and he loved it! He was so calm and kicked his chubby little legs the whole time!

It's hard to see Eric's legs in this picture, but he was actually kicking enough that he was moving forward a little.
With Daddy, so fun!
We were worried about him burning, even with all the sunscreen, so Kathy found this hat to try. We couldn't stop laughing, it was so funny and so cute!
Every time I would lean him back like this he would think about it for a minute and then just kick, kick, kick, it was so funny.

Not loving us laughing about the hat. Actually, he was just making a silly face because he was tired, but he probably didn't appreciate that either.
We had to keep stopping him from drinking the delicious chlorinated water, mmmm.
This is where he went right when we got home, he was so tuckered out. He looks so big!

My favorite sound

2011-07-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

Eric is so giggly now, we can't get enough of it! He laughs a lot for Mommy, but Daddy is the one that really gets him going no matter what. Tanner just has to look at Eric and he gets a big grin on his face, it is so cute. He is so much fun, we are loving every minute. Things are still great, we are just wanting to be done unpacking, but there is still a ways to go. Every time I think we're getting closer I open a couple more boxes and a new huge mess is made. But the place is great and we feel more and more blessed every minute. Tomorrow is our first day in our new ward, we are so excited. We still can't believe we are here sometimes and that this is all real. But we have a lot of support, it is so great because all of our neighbors are in med school and know exactly what we're going through. Here is Eric with Tanner, Tanner's beard always tickles Eric and makes him laugh.

Here is another one laughing with Daddy, I just never get tired of recording it. When he gets tired he laughs like crazy and in this one he was about to go down for a nap.

This last video is of Eric laughing at Aunt Tay while we were staying with them before we left. He was totally delirious because he was so tired and went crazy laughing. He is just the funniest, sweetest boy ever and we love him to pieces.

A new start..

2011-07-14T13:23:00.000-07:00

We had Tanner's cousin Alyssa do some family pictures outside our apartments in the village a few weeks before we moved. She did a great job, we absolutely love them! (alyssa kay photography, she's on facebook if you're interested). We gave them to our families before we left so they would have an updated picture of Eric before we left. These are some of my favorites:

Eric was a little stink and wouldn't smile most of the time, but once Sheboygan was brought in, he obliged.

This one is my favorite. I just love this face, those dimples, and how you can see his adorable chub. Also, those big blue eyes kill me. He's just the cutest little guy, and we love him so much!

We made it! We arrived in Milwaukee, WI on Monday, July 11, around 4:30 pm. It was a crazy journey. We left Saturday around 6 am. It has been a tearful past week, but we are excited to be here and feel more and more blessed each day. This video was on Sunday. Eric was such a trooper in the car and while he was awake he had a lot of fun with his friend Sheboygan (a toy giraffe). We still can't believe we drove 1450 miles to get here, it was a crazy 3 days. It already seems forever ago.

Thank goodness my dad and brother Dillon drove our second car out here and got here on Tuesday. They also helped unload our stuff, along with a bunch of awesome neighbors that jumped right in to help us. We have already met a lot of people and are so happy to be here. Our landlord Fred is amazing! He took us out to dinner with his wife when we got here. He is so nice and is taking great care of us. Our neighbors are all med students with families as well, so it perfect. We had three offers for dinner on Tuesday night from neighbors, they are all so great. They were all an answer to our prayers. On Monday as we were getting off at the Milwaukee exit, we both got so nervous and kept asking each other, "What have we done?" "Why did we come out here?" The first night here we didn't have any of our stuff, so we bought an air mattress and slept with beach towels for blankets, it was so funny. Don't worry, Eric had real blankets and slept comfortably in his pack'n'play.

Eric has been so great, poor little guy. He has tolerated moving into my in-laws and losing his bed, being stuck in a car for three days and sleeping in hotels, then sleeping in a new room again in his playpen. We set up his crib yesterday and we thought he would be relieved to be in it again, but we put him in it and the poor little guy lost it. Every time we put him down to sleep yesterday he would freak out. I think there were just too many changes for the little man. It was so sad. He is still having a hard time today, but doing better. But once he's up he's as happy as a clam. Here is a video today from his first food: peas! He was not sure what to think and kept shivering like he was getting the chills, it was hilarious.

We are having so much fun and discovering what is around Milwaukee. The main thing we are discovering is food. There are lots of local places that are so good, but if we keep eating there, we will be a lot bigger by the time Tanner is done. The humidity is an adjustment as well, but it isn't too hot, so it isn't as bad. Tanner's school is incredible, the hospitals around it are just massive. I thought the big hospital in Utah was huge, but this place is just massive. I also have an interview on Monday for a unit like the one I worked on before, we are so excited! We just feel so blessed right now, it is sad and scary leaving everyone behind and completely changing our lives, but we feel so close to each other and so close to the Lord, we know it will be great. But that doesn't mean we aren't excited for family and friends to come visit, we have a third bedroom, so when we are done packing, get on out here!

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2011-07-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

Wow, this past month has flown by! We really can't believe the time has come for the big move. Here's what we've been up to; Tanner has his first Father's Day with the cutest little boy ever, who obviously is excited that he has the best daddy ever.

These are all out of order, but here are some of the most amazing girls I know-my friends from nursing school (minus Nicole). Ashley and Christie are weeks away from their due dates (Christie has actually had her little boy this past week!). We had a few last get togethers, which were fun and sad at the same time. They are some of the most amazing women I know. Ashley is so smart and trendy. Christie is caring and funny. And Rachel is gorgeous and one of the strongest women I know. I am so sad to leave them, but I know we will keep in touch. Our boys will all be in the same grade, how fun is that?

Eric stripped down in the heat the other day and we spent some time on the grass lounging outside.

I love these rolls!!!

With mommy after the bath. I just love being a mom so much, I never comprehended how fulfilling and joyful it would be. He is the best little man ever and I love him so much I can hardly stand it.

We had a fun trip with Tanner's family to Moab. It was nice to get away and it was my first time there. We hiked Delicate Arch while Linz watched Eric and Noelle back at the condo. We had so much fun and are so grateful to our wonderful parents for taking us all on such a fun trip.

These are the nursing school kids (sounds like a club, like those old books, the boxcar kids, eh?): Gavin, Eric, and Kaylee. Christie's newest little guy is Connor, I'll post pictures later.

There aren't words needed with this adorable face. I just love him. He is four months here. Here are his stats from his 4 month appointment:

Height 24 in-50%

Weight 15 lb. 11 oz.-75% (He was 10% when he was born!)

I don't remember his head circumference, I have that packed away already. He has also learned how to roll over, eaten rice cereal, and starting laughing. It is such a fun age and we are loving every minute. Tanner is ready to work on crawling, I'm fine with him not learning that for a little while yet.

And Eric is looking more and more like Tanner every day. This picture just makes me laugh every time I see it.

I will post pictures of our last weeks with family, our other computer is already packed away. Our stuff has already been shipped and we are driving out in 4 days. I can't believe it is already here. The sadness didn't really hit me until this past week. I had my last day at work Friday, I will do a separate post on that later when I have all the pictures. There are just so many emotions we both feel. It is saddest to think of our families not seeing Eric as often, especially with him changing so much. But we will visit and it will be great. I will be better at updating and the next post will be from Milwaukee!!

Happy happy joy joy!

2011-05-31T13:06:00.000-07:00

Tanner and I both graduated this past month!! Woot woot! It is such a good feeling, though at first neither of us quite knew what to do with ourselves. Kind of like Eric looks like he doesn't know what to do with himself in this picture.

Bachelor's of Science in Chemical Engineering, yeah!

This was Eric's blessing day, May 7, 2011. We did it on a Saturday so friends and family could come because our chapel is too small to fit many people on a Sunday. It was such a great day and Tanner did an amazing job, it was a beautiful blessing. Even my brother who isn't LDS said that there was an amazing feeling there.

Yay, I'm three months old!

Getting so good at tummy time!

I don't know about this bird here.....

Mother's Day was wonderful, I woke up to feed Eric and Tanner made us breakfast and gave me a gift certificate for a real massage! I can't wait to get it. Even better, he conspired with one of our good friends so he got his wife the same thing and we can go together!

Even though it's been a couple weeks since Mother's Day, I want to write down some of the feelings I have about being a mom. I can't believe how much love I can have for someone. I love Tanner so much, but I didn't realize my capacity to love until Eric came into our lives. He had already taught me so much; I understand more about true selflessness, putting things in the Lord's hands, being submissive and humble, trusting, and completely loving. I am so grateful for the plan of salvation and the sealing power. I can't imagine our lives without Eric, it feels like we've just been waiting for him to come along. I feel blessed to be his mom and realize how lucky I am.

We are moving in less than 6 weeks! It's exhilarating, frightening, and heartbreaking all at once. I can't believe it's here, Tanner is going to med school. I have never lived outside of Utah or been so far from friends and family, it is going to be a big adjustment. I cried when I gave my manager my letter stating my last day. I love my job and the amazing people I work with. There is so much we are leaving behind, but I feel peace with the fact that we are going and I know there are so many blessings and wonderful experiences in store for us. We have our apartment already and I am currently applying for jobs. I feel terrified and I can't wait at the same time. Whenever I start to feel scared or down about leaving, I remind myself of how blessed we are and that there is nothing we can't do as long as we trust in the Lord. I've always believed that if you look for the positive in any situation, you will find it and the good will always present itself. Tanner read an article that said that optimistic people tend to be more successful because they believe things will be ok and don't let difficult circumstances get them down. I know it will be hard at times, but I know that it will be so great for our family and if I am focusing on the bad things, I could miss out on what the Lord is trying to teach me and the blessings he has in store.

It's official....

2011-05-06T20:55:00.000-07:00

Tanner and I are both college grads! Just had to share the exciting news, now to figure out what to do with ourselves instead of worrying about homework. I didn't walk because I had to work and I already had a graduation when I got my RN, but pictures to come soon of Tanner's graduation!

Eric- 2 1/2 Months

2011-04-28T09:49:00.000-07:00

Some recent videos of Eric-the first two are Eric talking to Aly and the other is Eric fake crying, it was so cute-and keep reading, lots of new pictures below!

Country music and other goings on

2011-04-28T09:12:00.000-07:00

Tanner has been constantly singing the Rascal Flatts song "The Broken Road" or whatever it's called, and I can't get it out of my head. He has maybe three random songs he sings really well, and that is one of them. We say "chills!" every time he sings them because it's so good it gives you the chills. I know, we're goofy. Anywho, life is great! Some really big news: I graduated last week!!!! I officially have my BSN, what a great feeling! I only had Eric for two months of school, I have no idea how people do it with kids, it was a lot more than I expected. Also, I had to go back to work on the 13th, which was hard, but I am lucky enough to work with amazing people and to love what I do, so it helps. I am also insanely busy, which helps the most.

Tanner has his final projects due tomorrow and he is totally done, graduation is one week from tomorrow!! We are so excited, but I don't know what we're going to do with ourselves with all the free time we're going to have. We have set a tentative move date, we'll most likely leave for Milwaukee July 10th. It's coming up so fast, and is sad, but at the same time we are so excited. The unknown is scary, but at the same time I love change, because it brings so many new experiences and opportunities. I know we'll be a better family for it. The thing that's hardest about it will be being so far from family when we see them so often. I've been terrible at updating, so here are a ton of pictures over the past month. Eric is now a smiling, cooing machine and just loves attention and to be loved on and played with. He is so much fun and has the sweetest personality. We feel so blessed to have him in our family!

I've started digital scrapbooking lately, because normal scrapbooking is just too messy and time consuming, and I came across this:

Eric's first bath. I can't believe how quickly he went from that skinny little thing to this:

Just look at those little dimples! He is so happy, I just love it!

Rockin' the snappy turtleneck from aunt Aly. He knows he looks like a stud, hence the pose.

Eric with Grandma Fullmer and Noelle. It's so cute, for some reason Noelle does that with her hands when smiling for pictures.

I just love this one! And this:

Cutest Daddy-Son photo. Ever.

Hanging out with mommy is fun too

The face he makes half the time when he sees a camera

Easter, April 2011. I don't know why, but we were horrible about taking pictures, but we got this great one of Tanner with Eric, his dad, and grandpa. They are all first sons, Tanner loves to point that out. Does this give you any clue of what Eric will look like when he's older?

Playing with Noelle

Looking so cute!

All worn out. I just love those chubby little wrists. Actually, I love everything about him.

2 Months!

2011-04-05T08:52:00.000-07:00

We can't believe Eric is already 2 months old! Time is flying by and he is just getting cuter by the minute. He is now cooing and smiling all the time and such a little flirt. He is so sweet and happy, we just can't get enough of him. The only thing I can say about him is that is very gassy and loves to pee and poop all over everything, but that's every baby, right? :)

He just had his 2 month check-up, here are his stats:

Weight: 25th percentile 10 lb 11 oz
Height: 50th percentile 22.5 in long
Head: 10th percentile 38 cm

He is a little guy, but his numbers are up quite a bit from birth, so the doctor is curious to see how much he will grow by 4 months. He's getting so chubby, I just love it!

Here he is playing with Aunt Tay, he had a fun conference weekend getting so much attention.

After the weekend was over, he was pretty pooped. This is with Great Grandma Fullmer holding him, he slept the whole time!

Life is good, we are really busy wrapping up the semester for both of us, thankfully my school ends next week, and my graduation is the week after. I am so excited! Sadly I do have to go back to work next week, which will be really sad, but my amazing sister-in-law is going to be watching him, so I know he'll be in good hands. Things are so different having a baby, but we can't imagine our lives without him. We just know that he was meant to come to our family and are loving seeing his sweet and fun personality more and more each day.

One Month

2011-03-09T09:52:00.001-08:00

Our sweet baby Eric is already a month old! He'll actually be five weeks tomorrow, time is flying by! He is such a good baby, he is happy and content, is actually a good sleeper for a newborn, and we just love him to pieces. He did his first real smile yesterday, Tanner was playing with him and talking to him and he looked right at Tanner and smiled, it was so cute! Aunt Aly got him these adorable frog jammies, I love them. I was lying in bed this morning thinking about the day he was born and the first time I saw him, he just makes me so happy! He is a noisy baby though, he loves to grunt and be really loud when he's falling asleep or first waking up.

These two with him sleep smiling are too cute, I just love watching him sleep!

He loves his baths! He'll fuss for a minute about being cold when we first undress him, but the second he hits the water, he just zones out.

I have to go back to work in a month, I know that is going to be hard, but I'm so thankful to be able to go part-time, so I'll only work two days a week. We are getting into a pretty good routine. Tanner is so great with him, I'm so lucky to have him.

In other news, we aren't moving until mid-July, but we have an apartment lined up for our move to Wisconsin! I'll post pictures next time, but they're so much bigger and nicer than our place now and the community we'll be living in is so great. The people are really friendly and supportive, they're all in the same boat we are. We're sad to be leaving, but at the same time, really excited for this new phase in our lives. I just know it's going to be such a great experience for us and really strengthen us as a family.

I'll end with a couple of Tanner's latest:

I was changing Eric's diaper in the middle of the night and I look up and Tanner is watching me and leaning on the wall and says, "I wish we could just spay and neuter all the idiots for breeding in this frigid cold." I couldn't think what to say to that.

As I came back to bed last night after a feeding, "You are the wind beneath my wings, the oil between my joints." That might be one of my favorites.

Finding a new normal

2011-02-16T15:38:00.000-08:00

It's true what they say, having a baby completely changes your life. The things that were no big deal before take so much longer and you really have to prioritize what is worth your time. Some things I didn't expect or realize:

Breastfeeding kind of takes over your life. Your body isn't really your own anymore. I have to make sure I'm eating and drinking enough, and it takes a lot more time than I realized. I'm not complaining, I have a healthy boy who loves to eat, which I am very grateful for, just something I've had to adjust to.

I've always loved sleep, but I didn't know how much until now. When we put him to bed at night, it makes us laugh because we're both running to our own bed and saying we have to hurry and go to sleep because he'll be up again in another two hours.

I'm a pretty laid back person, but I've already caught myself getting worried and worked up about silly things. You just can't help but worry that they're alright and if you're doing everything right. But I don't think that's ever going to end, so I'd better get used to it.

Parenting is a two man job. All you people that do it alone, I am in awe of you. I am so grateful for Tanner, he is such a huge help. When I've fed Eric and he just wants to be held or is still fussy, Tanner gets right up so I can get some sleep until the next feeding. He's an amazing dad and I love him so much.

The thing that has amazed me most of all is how in love I am with this little man. I just can't get enough of him. I love snuggling him and just taking him all in, his adorable little nose, those big blue eyes, his new smell, all of it. He is such a good boy and we just love him to death!

Labor and Delivery

2011-02-05T13:16:00.000-08:00

For my delivery, I decided I wanted to go natural and was successful. I have a few friends that told me if I was able to do it, they wanted the whole story, so here it is. For the record, I don't think that it is bad to get an epidural, I just didn't want to get one myself. I spent a lot of time learning about non-medicated pain relief, Lamaze, and talking with other people who had gone natural. I also was told how important it is to have a good coach there to support you and Tanner was amazing. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done, but I would definitely do it again. You have been warned in advance of what this is about, so don't read on if you don't want the gory details.

On Wednesday I worked a 12 hour shift. I had been down the day before because I was so eager for Eric to come and felt like it was imminent, but he just wasn't having it. So after work Wednesday I conceded to myself that this baby wasn't coming until he was ready and as long as he was healthy, that was all that mattered. I got home, took a shower, ate some dinner, and just relaxed for a while. I had the next day off, so I wasn't in a hurry to get to bed. Tanner finally finished his homework, and we got ready for bed. I was climbing into bed and arranging all my pillows when I heard a small 'pop!' and then felt a HUGE gush of fluid soaking our bed. I started yelling for Tanner, who just stood in the doorway in disbelief. I told him to get me a towel quick, and he came back with two paper towels. Priceless! So I run to the bathroom, trying not to hose down our entire apartment and jump in the tub. I got an intense adrenaline rush and started shaking like a leaf, I couldn't get myself to calm down. I just stood in the shower trying to slow down my breathing and tell myself this was it, it was really time. Part of me felt relief and another part wanted to just panic. Tanner was in a panic trying to grab all our stuff for the hospital and kept asking me if I was serious that my water broke and I didn't just pee myself.

I wasn't having any contractions yet, so I took some time to get ready and get dressed. I called the doctor to make sure I should go in and she told me I should head there right away and she would call the hospital so they would be ready for us. So we grabbed our things and got to the hospital a little after midnight. I had heard of so many people going to the hospital and being sent home, I was just praying that wouldn't happen to us. And the fact that I wasn't having contractions made me worry they would tell us to come back later. But they admitted us and tested my pad I had on, which was positive for amniotic fluid. They didn't want to check me because my water had already broke so I wasn't sure how dilated I was yet. They told me if I wasn't starting to have some definite contractions by 5 am they would start me on Pitocin. So Tanner and I settled in for what we had been waiting for and tried to take in the fact that we were going to meet our baby soon. The nurse asked if I wanted an epidural, I told her I would prefer not to, within reason.

About 1 am I started having contractions. They weren't bad, just like regular menstrual cramps. They set in pretty quickly, they had hooked me up to the monitors and the measurements for my contractions were already only 5 minutes apart. The nurse did a quick ultrasound to make sure he was headdown. He was, but he was facing the wrong way, which usually means you'll have back labor, but luckily, I wasn't having any back pain. They started getting stronger and I started using my breathing to take my mind off of it. The nurse told me I really needed to sleep and rest while the contractions were still mild since I had worked all day and hadn't slept. She gave me some pain medication to help me sleep through the contractions. I dozed off and on for about an hour. Tanner was in the room finishing a homework assignment. I woke up and starting feeling the contractions again, but they were manageable, so I just breathed through them and tried to relax in between them. Lamaze may seem silly, but breathing and relaxation techniques really are what got me through the pain. There are three stages of breathing, I was still on the first, you change to the next one once one isn't working anymore. Around 4 am the contractions were getting more intense and I couldn't rest through them, I had to take more focus through each one. The nurse came in about 5 and suggested I take more pain medication to try and get more rest before the intense part.

I took the medication, but at this point all it did was make me groggy between the contractions, but it didn't take any of the pain away during the contractions. The nurse decided to check me, I was dilated to 5 cm. She said I was progressing well and wouldn't need the pitocin. Not long after this, I had to move on to the second breathing technique. At first it was working great and focusing on my breathing and focal point really took my mind off the pain, it was so motivating. I didn't realize it at first, but I was having a harder time staying in the bed because I was having lower back pain and shooting pains down my legs; the back labor was starting. I asked the nurse if I could please walk around, so from 6 to 645, the nurse let me off the monitor to get up. It helped my back and leg pain so much to get up, but it was hard walking and breathing through the contractions. I eventually had to get back in bed and just focus on breathing and getting through the contractions. I had to just take each one one at a time and relax in between.

Now the back labor was hitting strong and I had to really focus and get my mind off the pain. I had to focus on my breathing and rock myself at the same time to take the pressure off my back. Eventually I sat up and Tanner put counterpressure on my back while I went up another level for my breathing. The nurse Sherrie wanted to check me again, this was around 715. She checked and I was already to an 8! I just told myself things were moving along and to keep going. I also realized that this was it, I wasn't going to give in and have an epidural, because I no longer had that option. The pain was so intense I lost my focus a couple of times and just wanted to stop, but then I remembered that there was no other choice and I pulled it back together. Tanner was amazing. He was right there, pushing on my back, feeding me ice chips, and kept telling me how good I was doing and I could do it.

Around 8, they had Dr. Laine come in and she checked me again. She said I was at a 9, but my cervix needed to dilate more so it wouldn't tear. She asked if I was having the urge to push, which I wasn't, so I just said okay and kept going. About two minute after she walked out, the urge to push hit me. I have never felt anything so intense. Sherrie told me to resist it and just keep breathing. Tanner held my hand and started counting and breathing with me to keep me focused. After ten minutes, I told Sherrie I just had to start pushing, it was too much. She told me to hold off for three more contractions, she would get the doctor and I could start pushing. It literally took everything I had, Tanner and I laugh about it now, but I was gripping the side of the bed during those contractions, he he hooing and praying I could make it to the end. The contractions were literally on top of each other now, so looking back, those three contractions were probably only five minutes total.

Dr. Laine came in a prepared everything while I was breathing through the last contraction. She began explaining to me how I was going to push and get myself into position. I sat up slightly and waited for the contraction to start. I felt it coming and got ready. I had thought pushing was going to be the hardest part, but it actually felt good to be able to push. It was exhausting at the same time, but in some ways it was the best part because it was a relief. I was so tired at this point though from being up for so long that I realized after each contraction I was falling asleep. I would suddenly wake up when I felt the next contraction coming on and see they were all looking at me. It was actually a good thing though because it helped me really relax between contractions and it's funny looking back. Tanner admitted to me later that he didn't think I was going to have the strength to push him out because I was so exhausted. He also said he was worried because I was pushing so hard my face was purple. I did end up after delivery with bruising under my eyes because the blood vessels burst in and under my eyes from the pressure. Dr. Laine, Sherrie, and Tanner were all encouraging me so much and each push telling me to give a little more and push a little harder. It was so exhausting, but when Tanner told me I pushed for 45 minutes, I couldn't believe it, because it seems like it went by faster than that.

She told me I was finally getting close and I was just wondering when he was going to come out. I knew it when his head was getting close; my friend had prepared me for it, she called it the 'ring of fire,' and told me when I felt it, I just had to push through it. I had a feeling this was it and just kept pushing as hard as I could. It started getting more painful, but I just kept telling myself to push through, it was almost over. As his head and shoulders came out, that was probably the most painful moment of labor, (I found out later I got a second degree tear) I actually ended up yelling as he came out, but before I knew it, I felt him come out. I fell back on the bed and nearly fell asleep again, until suddenly I felt them put him on my chest and heard his sweet cry. I looked at Tanner, who looked amazed and had tears in his eyes. I instantly felt an intense rush unlike anything I had ever felt. I watched Tanner cut the cord, they dried him off and put him against my skin. I looked at him and he opened his eyes and we just stared at each other, I couldn't help but just cry, it was one of the most amazing and happy moments of my life.

Peoples' first question to me is would I do it again, and yes, I would. It was painful of course, it's labor, but I kept telling myself it would get worse, and by the end I realized I could handle the worst and that it would end. Having Tanner there and being such an amazing support was really what got me through, again, he really was amazing. I was lucky that my labor went so quickly, otherwise I don't know if I would have had the energy to make it. But after labor, I was stitched up and changed, and I was able to stand right up and get in the wheelchair to go to my new room. Then I was able to get up and go to the bathroom, I walked down for the first bath and got to watch, and though I was pretty sore the day of, by the next day I was feeling really good. Also, the rush of energy I got from all the endorphins after delivery was so great, I might have looked bad, but I felt really good. Eric was so alert right away too, I felt such a connection. That was my experience, sorry this is the longest post ever, but hopefully it helps those that were wondering more about it.

Eric Robert Fullmer II

2011-02-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Eric was born Thursday, February 3, 2011, at 9:04 am. He weighed in at 6 lbs. 9 oz. and was 20.5 inches long. We couldn't have imagined how it would feel to finally meet our little man and hold him in our arms. We just can't stop staring at his little face and snuggling him, he is absolutely perfect. He has Tanner's brow bone and his mouth, we're not sure whose nose. He is a grunter and makes us laugh with his constant little noises.
He is still on the same schedule he was in my belly, which was sleep all day with the occasional wake-up to remind me he was there, then party all night long. Tanner and I are adjusting to the partying lifestyle, it's definitely as tiring as everyone says. But we already love him so much, I can't believe how much I love someone I hadn't even met two days ago, I didn't know it was possible. Tanner is the most adorable dad and is so helpful, I'm so grateful I have him.

Here we are, right after delivery! I look pretty beat up, but heck, I just went through childbirth.

This panicked look makes me sad and it's kinda funny at the same time. It looks like he's reaching out to Tanner to save him.

This is literally seconds after he was born. I thought I was about to pass out from exhaustion with the pushing until I realized he was here and they had put him on me. I just started to cry, it was one of the most incredible moments of my life. He opened his beautiful eyes and just stared at me, this precious little soul straight from heaven, I really can't describe it.

We've named Eric after his uncle that passed away a few years ago. We know he was so excited to be an uncle and that he was watching over little Eric on his way into the world.

We know being parents won't be easy, but we are so excited for this adventure in our lives to begin. Our lives are never going to be the same!

Before I forget

2011-02-01T05:05:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to archive a few of Tanner's latest sleeptime gems:

As I'm getting ready to leave for work and say goodbye, Tanner tells me "I love you and I love the way you've forever changed music." "Tanner, what are you talking about?"
"Oh, sorry, I was thinking you had invented Napster."
Oh well, in that case, that makes perfect sense, right? :)

In the middle of the night Tanner starting yelling "S*** (sorry for the expletive, but I'm just quoting him)!" "Tanner, what's wrong? What are you yelling about?"
"They're all over me, okay?!"
"What's all over you?"
"Well you wouldn't want snakes all over you, WOULD YOU?!"
He then stole the covers in a huff and turned away from me. That's what I get for being so insensitive.

This is a little embarrassing, but I'm gonna share anyway. Last night I was turning in the bed, and a little toot might have escaped me. I didn't expect it, but it was a bad one. Don't judge, I'm 9 months pregnant! As I turned, it woke up Tanner enough that he started to turn the other way and he lifted the blankets a bit. He was almost turned and then he turned to me in a panic yelling "Oh no! Who pooped???" I was embarrassed for a second until I realized he was still asleep and kept mumbling to himself. I laid there laughing for a good ten minutes, his face was so worried when he yelled, I can't get over it.

That's all for now.

2011-01-29T19:08:00.000-08:00

Eeek! The sheer size of my own abdomen has overwhelmed me, I didn't imagine it could get so big. If it wouldn't gross you all out, I would post a picture of my belly button, 'cause I gotta tell ya, it's pretty freaky. When I take a deep breath it pokes out half an inch, funny yet gross. I'm waddling my way around the hospital now to take care of my patients and probably making them all nervous when I tell them I'm due in 12 days. I have so many feelings, most of all excitement and impatience to meet him. And impatience with people, which I feel a little bad about. I think it's hormones, not being able to sleep, and constantly being uncomfortable. At my appointment this week the doctor said he is definitely head-down still and really low. I'm dilated to a 2 and 80% effaced, yay! But I get a little excited and then I've had a few people roll their eyes at me and tell me I'll go over a week, it doesn't mean anything. They could be completely right, but seriously people, you don't say this to a woman that is 9 months pregnant! I'm planning on my two weeks left, but I am optimistic and will be happy if he comes sooner. He has been taunting me with contractions that won't get stronger or if they do, they aren't consistent, but he's gotta come out sometime. Oh yes Eric, you can't stay in there forever, so pretty please, come out!!

Too cute

2011-01-25T20:18:00.000-08:00

It isn't much, but we have our nursery all set up! Because of our cinderblock walls, we didn't hang anything up, it's just too much of a hassle. But it's still pretty darn cute. Would you like a tour?

First we have the one view of the room, which hosts the changing table, rife with diapers and the many adorable blankets we've received!!

Then we have the crib, all decked out with his monkey sheets and matching quilt, perfect for any little man getting his sleep on!

Last of all, we have his chair Grandma Fullmer gave him for Christmas. He obviously won't be using this for a while, but it is so cute, I had to put it up. It is literally a few inches off the ground, too adorable!!

As you can see, this room is very small, but Eric will be small as well, so I think it'll work out just right. His diaper bag is all packed with his little outfits to come home; just waiting by the door. I've been having tons of Braxton Hicks contractions, today they've been stronger and lasting longer, but nothing painful really. Tanner has taken to randomly yelling at my belly "Come out! Come out!" And my sister told me that she read eating hot dogs puts you into labor, so I guess I'll have to go gets myself a hot dog tomorrow. I found that so funny. I'll try whatever works, let me know if you have any suggestions! So here's to hoping he'll decide to come sooner rather than later!

Quick Update

2011-01-24T21:34:00.000-08:00

I have been horrible about blogging lately, I've found that end of pregnancy and motivation don't really go together. I will post some pictures later, I just wanted to update how things are going. Our nursery is all put together and we have our 'go bag' all ready. I went to my 37 week appointment last week, she said he is head down, I was pretty sure he was because he's been having so much fun kicking me in the ribs! She checked me and I am 1 cm dilated and 70% effaced, woohoo! When I told Tanner he asked me if the doctor thought I was going into labor that day, it was so funny. She told me it could still be a while, but that it was a good sign I will go into labor on my own, which I'm happy about. We're feeling nervous that it's really here, he can come any day! But I'm to the point that I am ready to have him out of there, there is so much pressure and it's getting hard to walk. I really feel for women that go over their due dates and I'm hoping that isn't the case. After being so scared of labor, it's funny how now I don't care how he comes out, I'm just ready for him to come out! We just can't wait to hold our sweet little boy!!

Pillow talk

2010-12-22T08:05:00.000-08:00

[I'm coming back from the bathroom in the middle of the night]

"Mary?"

"What?!"

"Mary? Are you Mary?"

"Huh??"

"Are you my mom?" (Tanner's mom is named Mary)

"No, I'm not your mom! Who do you think I am?"

"I know who you are."

"Don't you think your mom would be at home in her own bed, with your dad?"

"Ok, I'm just saying, it is possible you could be a mom."
______________________________

[Coming back in bed a different night]

T: Are you ok??

N: Yeah, I'm fine.

T: People these days, ya know? Sometimes I wish we could just sort them out like bad luggage.
______________________________
T: Looks pretty good, eh?

N: What does?

T: Oh, the corporate, um, filing statue.

N: (laughing) Ok, what is a filing statue?

T: I don't know! It's a filing statue!!

(When he starts to get frustrated by my asking questions, I know he's about to wake up, so I stop)

Feeling good

2010-12-22T07:55:00.001-08:00

I was at work yesterday, talking to one of my coworkers about childbirth and asking her what it was like. She started telling me about the first time you see them, when they're out and they put them on your belly. She then said some things that I just loved and wanted to record so I will remember them. She mentioned how amazing it is when you first see this little person, that they really have been growing inside you and now they're here. My favorite thing was when she told me that we are here on earth to progress; and with that progresses our ability to love. First we love our parents, then other people around us. Then we find the person we want to spend our lives with, and we think there is no way we could love another person as much. Then you meet this sweet little person, that the two of you made, and it's a different love, but you do love them just as much. And it's completely selfless, and gives us the smallest glimpse of the Lord's infinite love for us. She has two kids and said with her second she didn't think she could love another child as much as her first, but you do, and that love only increases.

I thought that was amazing and it just made me so happy and even more excited to meet him. He is getting so big, I can't believe it. The other day I was sitting there with my hand on my belly at church and suddenly I felt a little foot push against it, I could tell exactly what it was, it was amazing. Tanner felt it too the other night and was so cute, he was so excited. We just feel so blessed!!

2010-12-08T10:19:00.000-08:00

I was bored and surfing the web when I came upon this thing that puts your faces together to see what your baby will look like. I was very surprised to find out that apparently our baby will look NOTHING like either one of us! It just made me laugh really, the goofy expression and the apparently full set of adult teeth already. I'm sorry that sounds horrible, but who can look at that picture and not just laugh? It's weird looking I just can't stop laughing.

I am now six weeks from being full-term and so excited and completely terrified at the exact same time. We still only have a crib, but we haven't had any showers yet, so I'm sure those will help. I can't believe we're so close to actually meeting the little guy. He is growing a ton, we sat on the couch the other night and watched my belly move as he kicked me. I'm starting to get pretty uncomfortable, but I don't let myself think about it too much because there are still two months of getting even bigger ahead. I know it sounds silly but a part of me still feels like I'm not old enough to have a kid. It's a little weird to think of myself as being a mom and Tanner being a dad. We're so excited, I know we have no clue what we're in for, but we can't wait. :)

So cute

2010-12-05T08:07:00.000-08:00

Tanner is going to be the cutest dad ever. He says he hopes little Eric gets interactive soon because he is so excited to play with him. Tanner is just like a big kid, in a good way. We were with my niece yesterday and Tanner wanted to see her reaction to a snowman, so the three of us went out and built a snowman together. I was taking the pictures, so I'm not in any, but I helped, though Tanner did most of it.

Our finished snowman

Tanner getting stuck trying to get through the tunnel he made for Noelle

Tanner trying to convince Noelle to go through the tunnel-but she was having none of it

Such a cutie, we love this girl!

So excited to help! She kept dropping the snow as she was trying to put it on the snowman and saying "Ops!"

So cute together, I love it. What a fun day.

End of semeser sleep-talking

2010-12-02T20:39:00.000-08:00

Tanner's sleep-talking always gets worse around finals because of the stress. Here are some things from the last three days (two of them were when my alarm went off in the morning):

[Alarm goes off]

"It's a little irrational, don't ya think?"

"What?"

"You know, this obsession with San Francisco."

[Say goodbye before work]

"I must be, not just become." (He's been reading Hamlet, we think that's why he said this"

[alarm]

"The process only has a few minutes left."

"What process?"

"Well how should I know?!?"

"You're the one that said it!"

"Oh, right. I love you so much."

He's had a couple others in the middle of the night, but I can't remember them again when I wake up. He was awake when he said it, but the other day he was talking about something and stated "I'm so excited, I could moonwalk all over the place." I couldn't help but laugh that he equated his happiness with moonwalking. He is just too funny.

Great news and big life changes..

2010-11-21T16:56:00.000-08:00

So Thursday flashback:

We get home and go to the mailbox like we do everyday to see if Tanner has gotten any letters from med schools. We open it up expecting the usual nothing and there is a letter from the U. We tentatively open it and to our dismay find that Tanner did not get accepted. We are numb. We don't know what more he could have done, I'm going to brag and say that his application was amazing, he's been told that at all his interviews, and we were pretty devastated. So we go in the house and sit sadly on the couch for a few minutes. Tanner goes to check his email and begins yelling; to our utter amazement we find out some great news, Tanner has been accepted to the Medical College of Wisconsin!! In two minutes, we went from miserable to ecstatic. It hadn't even been a week since his interview there, but he is in!! He is still waiting to hear from a couple other schools, so it could still be a different place, but not the U. It is sad that we will have to move away, but we are more happy and grateful that he got in and his dream to become a doctor is now possible.
Our families were pretty sad when we told them, but we are just excited. The more we have thought and talked about it, the more we are grateful for this opportunity and know that this is what the Lord meant for us. It will be a great experience, even though it will be difficult to be so far from family, it will be so good for us and I know we will learn so much. And we will really rely on the church and each other. I know I will need the Lord's help, but I am optimistic and can't feel anything but happy about our new adventure together. And thankfully we have blogs and fb to stay in touch. Change is a good thing. This will be a huge change, far from friends and family, starting med school, a new little baby, and leaving my job that I absolutely love. There is the fear of the unknown, but everyone I know that has lived out of state has said it has been a great experience, and we have actually always wanted to. I'm just nervous for the -10 degree winters. Otherwise, I just know this is going to be great. Tanner laughed when I said I hoped we could take our dishwasher with us. Also, all you friends who have been just dying to visit Milwaukee in your lifetime, now you can come and visit us!
We won't be leaving for school until the end of next summer, so we'll still be here a while. It is nice to at least know where he is going and be able to prepare ourselves for it. So this Thanksgiving, you'll know one thing we're especially grateful for. The other thing we're grateful for is little Eric! He's growing and giving me that nice basketball look. He's kicking and strong. I had my appointment this week and sadly I was barely over on my glucose test, so I have to retake it this week to make sure I don't have gestational diabetes. Did you know for that second test you have to eat a candy bar every day for 3 days before you take it again? If they're making me, I guess I'll have to force it down. :) So we're hoping that comes back negative, my doctor said it was so borderline, she thinks I'll be okay. Also, I've gotten a little too anemic so I have to take extra iron, mmm. Tanner and I haven't been able to find a time that works for both of us for a birth class, so we have a class on DVD. We started watching it today, it was so funny practicing breathing together in our living room. I was proud, he was very interested in all the info and excited to try out everything she was teaching. He's so cute, I just love him so much. Here is the latest shot of the baby bump:

28 weeks

Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?

2010-11-11T18:31:00.000-08:00

After these past few years of marriage, Tanner and I had an epiphany. Our messy apartment problem always starts with the dishes. In our lives, they are the root of all evil, to put it overdramatically. Once they pile up and get all nasty, the rest of the house goes to pot. So we took the plunge and bought this beauty:

A portable Maytag dishwasher. It is just amazing. Dirty dishes go in and come out clean. I now understand why women get excited about appliances. Because they are amazing. Tanner is in Milwaukee right now for another interview and requested that I not do the dishes until he gets back tomorrow so he can start the dishwasher. Yeah, our lives are pretty exciting, I know. But don't judge, those of you that have lived dishwasher-less can sympathize.

Here I am at 27 weeks. I have finally invested in the stretchy maternity pants and am feeling good. Eric is constantly kicking and growing like crazy. Next week will start the third trimester and we're getting really excited to meet the little guy!

Pea buh

2010-11-07T20:36:00.000-08:00

October flew by, we did a lot of fun things: Celebrated Tanner's 25th birthday, Noelle's 2nd birthday, Tanner went to Philadelphia for an interview, went to a good friend's wedding, and had fun with friends. This picture is the only one I got of Tanner and I at Christie's super fun Halloween party. We were bobbing for apples and Tanner was laughing because after two rounds, I never was able to get even one apple in my mouth. Not my most attractive shot, but it was funny.

So, for all you sleepy Tanner fans, here's another dream quote:

T: "Hey, it's [some weird word I can't remember 'cause it was the middle of the night] day."

N: "What??"

T: "It's in honor of all the oil production."

N: "And how do you celebrate that?" (I'm trying not to laugh)

T: "With lots of corporate vistas."

N: "What does that mean????"

T: "Don't know, but we'll figure it out."

I asked him to explain in the morning, but he still didn't know what a corporate vista was. But he was proud of himself for dreaming about oil. I'm not sure why, but that made him feel like he must have been dreaming about something intelligent.
In other news, only one month left of the semester, and I couldn't be more thrilled! And Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I LOVE Thanksgiving!
In a week and a half, I will hit the third trimester. Thrilling, yet terrifying.
Tanner is just the best husband ever. He is so cute, talking to my belly and always trying to feel him kick. He's going to be the most adorable dad. He tries to joke and say that he's going to give him spankings everyday. haha I just can't wait to see him hold him for the first time, it's going to be the cutest.
I know when I'm close to delivering I'll be ready to just have him out, but did any of you other ladies feel totally freaked about labor and delivery?? I wonder if I think about it too much. I know I can do it because women have been doing it since the dawn of time, but I can't help it, and I can't not think about it. Sometimes I get nervous that I'm nervous, thinking it's a bad sign of how I'll do. How can you prepare for something you have no idea what it will feel like and is supposed to be really painful? When I say I'm freaking out, I mean that I've been nervous about it for the past couple weeks and will probably be fine soon, but I don't freak out too often, so it stresses me out.
Lastly, to explain the title of this post. Tanner loves to tease me about this one time over a year ago, when he asked me to make him two peanut butter sandwiches to eat on the way to school. So I'm driving him to school and he's eating them and exclaims "Did you put JUST peanut butter??" "Well, yeah, that's what you said." He told his family and my family, he thought it was so funny. Seriously though, I always grew up calling it peanut butter and jelly, or PB&J. Who says just peanut butter sandwich? Anywho, on a totally random note he loves to recollect about a friend from junior high that loved to abbreviate everything (bball, McD's, even called football f-ball) and sometimes will do it to be funny. So a couple weeks ago he is abbreviating things that don't need to be abbreviated and asks "Do you remember the time you made a just peanut butter sandwich?" and starts laughing. Since then he has decided to call me "Pea buh," short for "Peanut butter." Clever, eh? Just a small insight into the weirdness of our marriage. I don't know whether to get frustrated at him for making fun of me or laugh at how silly it is. I usually choose laughing. I'm so glad I married him, he is definitely my favorite.

Have to laugh at myself

2010-10-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

I have to make fun of myself when I think about how stressful life can be right now and I think to myself: "Life will be so much easier when I am done with school and work part-time and just have regular life and the new baby." Then I have to remind myself, regular life will be getting NO sleep, still having a messy apartment, and still working twice a week. It sounds like I'm complaining, but it actually helps remind me to be more in the here and now and be grateful for every stage we're in, because it's always going to be crazy, but it's always good along the way. :)

Random Sunday

2010-10-24T19:39:00.000-07:00

Went to Region Conference today, I love hearing Pres. Uchtdorf speak

I have a super wiggly baby in my belly and I love him

Celebrated my niece's 2nd birthday today, I just love that little girl so much!

Tanner and I have started randomly singing each other Christmas songs, it's pretty great

This month it was 9 years since I was baptized

I love that it's so cold and windy outside, and so warm and cuddly in our ghetto little apartment

I love my family, they really are the best

We are so very, very blessed. Life is good.

It's me, Tanner Michael Fullmer

2010-10-21T21:01:00.000-07:00

Last week I got up in the middle of the night to pee. I'm in the bathroom in the dark, and Tanner walks by the bathroom and scares me. I gasp and he creepily backs up, stares into the bathroom and puts out both arms and tells me, "It's me, Tanner Michael Fullmer. It's me, Tanner Michael Fullmer." I then laugh and ask him if he's even awake, to which he replies that he doesn't know and walks away.
We've been staying really busy as usual, but life is great. I remind myself when I feel overwhelmed how great things are and how much we have been blessed. I had another appointment today, 24 weeks! I can't believe how fast the time is going by, full-time work and school probably contribute to how fast it seems. Sweet baby Eric is doing great, everything looks just perfect! He is measuring a few days small, which they said is not a big deal. He is moving all the time, I love lying there before I go to sleep and feeling him wiggle around. I played some Fleetwood Mac once and put the speaker on my belly and he starting dancing around, he already has good taste in music, we're so proud.
I realized that next month will put me into the their trimester, which I have to admit, made me really nervous. I just feel so unprepared, we haven't really had time yet to think about getting things ready. I'll have a lot to do during the holiday break. I'm so excited to meet him, but nervous for what a huge change this will be in our lives.
Most of my feelings are good. I am amazed at how much I already love this little guy, I feel like I love him more every day. I can't wait to see his personality. I love seeing Tanner get so excited, he doesn't think about it as much as I do, since he doesn't have the reminder of it kicking him all day, but he is starting to get really into it. He loves to feel him move and says goodbye to him every time he leaves, it is so cute. I can't wait to see Tanner hold him. I will try to update more frequently, here is the latest baby bump picture, it's grown a lot since last month!!

Who thought getting kicked could be so much fun?

2010-10-06T20:56:00.000-07:00

Seriously. I just started feeling little Eric's kicks and punches on Monday and I am so excited! It is a weird feeling, having something alive in your belly, but so amazing. I can't help but wonder what he's like in there and how much he has grown. I'm guessing he's grown a lot in the last two weeks, or I'm hoping, because my belly is expanding rather rapidly.
My favorite was tonight because Tanner has been sad 'cause he hasn't been able to feel it, but tonight he did! I wish I could have caught a picture of the look on his face, it was so cute. He is so happy he felt it, I love it. He got a huge smile on his face and kissed me. It's starting to feel a lot more real now, I'm realizing that this little guy is really coming, and quick. I'm so excited and a little nervous, because this is going to be a big change for our family. And Tanner says I act like a cranky two-year old when I'm really tired. I'm gonna have to work on that. Something funny he said was during our prayer one night, he said "please bless Nina's womb...that she will keep it secret, keep it safe." I couldn't stop laughing, it was so funny. Another night he was tired and said "please bless Nina's womb...her spare 'oom." If you aren't geeky like us, you won't get these, but they're from Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia. It still makes me laugh, even now.
This last part is more about my feelings about pregnancy so far, because I want to have a way to remember how I felt. More than anything I am so excited and can't wait to meet him. I want to see his face and look into his eyes and just love him to pieces. I can't believe how much I love him already and we haven't even met yet. I don't want anything bad to happen to him and just sit and think about what it's going to be like all the time. I am a little nervous because I know it's going to be harder than anything I've ever done. It's going to be exhausting and frustrating at times. I worry if I'll be a good mom. I even had a dream before we found out the gender, that we had a little boy, and we got home the day after he was born and I realized I still hadn't even fed him. Then Tanner was sitting by him on the edge of the bed and he rolled off the bed! It was traumatic and silly, I know, but still sad.
I wonder what his little personality is going to be like. I have a feeling he might be a little hyper because both ultrasounds so far they have told us he is more active than most and now I am feeling him move all the time. I worry about having the energy to finish school for two more months when he is first born. I know it's only two months, but I'm worried about having enough time to take care of him and getting homework done.
I feel bad that I have no energy. I think Tanner is tired of hearing about how tired I am. :) He is so great and I couldn't ask for a better hubs. I have these days of feeling great and motivated and I do so much that I wear myself out I think. Then I have days where I'm so tired, just the thought of having more than two things to do in the day makes me almost want to cry. I haven't been sick for a while, so I'm very thankful for that, it makes life much easier and pregnancy a lot more enjoyable. Most of all I'm just so thankful that we have the opportunity to welcome this wonderful little person into our family. I feel so incredibly blessed just that we're having him, that it makes me see even more that the material things don't matter. It really is all about families and I'm so thankful ours is forever.

It's a boy!!

2010-09-26T20:39:00.000-07:00

So most of you know already from facebook or texts, but we found out this past week we are having a little boy!!! We are so excited!!! In case you can't guess how excited, just refer to my overuse of exclamation points!!!!!!!!
The past month has been a blur. School is keeping us both crazy busy and I admit I've gotten a little overwhelmed at times. But I've realized I need to just balance my life more and rely on the Lord and things will all work out. I was shocked on Friday night, I got home from work and showered and changed into my jammies. I walked past the mirror and did a double take 'cause I'm pretty sure my belly grew a ton just overnight! I even asked Tanner if it had looked that big the day before and he was surprised too. It's exciting to be looking more pregnant, it makes it all feel more real. We've been horrible about taking pictures, so these are the only ones I have now, but here is the baby bump:

20 weeks! Halfway there!

I might have already posted a picture of his crib, but I'll do it again, 'cause I love to look at it ever since our ultrasound.

Here are the exciting pictures, it's little Eric!! He's the cutest (little creepy in a way, but a good way) little skeleton baby I've ever seen. He was moving all over the place and kept his hands up by his face like he is here in the picture. I held it together for a while, but by the end I had to cry a little because I was so happy; plus I saw Tanner was teary eyed and that was too much for me.

He's so much bigger than last time we saw him, he's all squished! Tanner was worried the other night he's going to come out with his head sideways like that and told me I need to give him more room. If you can't see him very well, his head is in the middle, that's his hand and arm on the right, and the big circle in the bottom right is his cute lil tummy.

Here's his perfect little foot, five toes and all. This is where I finally cried. It's amazing, I can't believe he's really growing in there. I can't feel much still because of where the placenta is, but he's getting big so fast!

Last of all, proof he's a boy. :) Tanner and I laughed that they circled it for us. Tanner asked the doctor doing the ultrasound "Are you sure it's a boy?" She said, well, if it were a girl, nothing would be in that little circle, so yeah, I'm pretty sure. It made me laugh. Tanner is so excited, it's the cutest thing ever. He's going to be a great dad. I'll try to update more next month, they couldn't see a couple things last time, so we have to get another ultrasound next month, so we'll have more pictures, I'm excited to see how much he grows!

Lonely

2010-08-31T21:01:00.000-07:00

Tanner is in Columbus, Ohio for his first med school interview. He left today and I'm picking him up late tomorrow night, but this is only the second time since we've been married that we've spent the night apart. And after I got in the car after leaving him at the airport, I totally cried. Cried!? Pa.the.tic. I'm totally embarrassed with myself. I totally have these thoughts that when we have the baby I'll be more laid back than other moms and not so uptight and worried all the time..but I realized my naivety when I was calling Tanner to make sure he remembered to get something to eat and I was so worried he'd get lost on his way to his hotel (in my defense, Tanner is horrible with directions). He is a grown man. I thought about this and felt like an idiot. How am I going to have kids and not drive them crazy? Luckily after the first few times I called him, I gained some insight into my behaviors and forced myself to stop. But it is lonely knowing I'll have to sleep alone, but it's one night, so I can make it, right? Tanner and I are always joking that I have 'separation anxiety,' we thought it was a joke, but now I'm not so sure. :) Anywho, pray for him on his interview, even though I know he'll do great! Also, he got an interview at the U in September, we are so excited, I can't stop telling everyone!!

End of summer

2010-08-24T20:23:00.001-07:00

For our last summer huzzah, we decided to go camping with my nursing school pals and their hubsys! It was so much fun, we went up to the Uintahs by Lily Lake and completely forgot our camera, so the pictures are courtesy of Christie. Above is Nicole, Me in my hot pants, Ashley, and Rachel. This one is of Kaylee, BJ and Christie's baby, and she is pretty much favorite little person ever, just look at that face! How could you not love her? Tanner said on the drive home if we have a girl he hopes they're exactly like her. :) We had so much fun and definitely needed a little getaway. Other than driving some places our little Suzuki couldn't really handle and denting our car's frame a little, the trip was a success!

For those of you who don't know, Tanner has two major phobias-spiders and bears. Right after we got our tent set up, we realized there were strange markings on this tree directly outside our tent. Then we realized they were bear claws. Everyone started joking about it, then we all got scared and stopped.

Eric and Jeremy man-bonding
Me and Rachel, both prego! Rachel is due next month having a little boy, we are so excited for them! And she is such a trooper coming camping!! She even squatted to pee in the wilderness! At 8 months pregnant! I tried squatting for my first time, and totally peed on my pants a little bit, I was seriously impressed with her skills!

Christie and adorable little Kaylee. Did I mention she's the cutest thing ever?

Tanner and BJ catching fish like the manly men they are

Cutesy Nicole and Jeremy, just had their 2 month anniversary! Awww..

The boys getting their fishing poles ready! Eric, Tanner, and BJ

We're so grateful for so many great friends!

In other news, our little fetus is growing like a weed and starting to make my belly poke out. It's a little sad to look chubby, but really I'm excited to be showing, it's so fun! According to a website, it's the size of a large apple or something. Why do baby websites all compare baby sizes to fruit? Last month it was a fig, I know it's uncultured to admit, but I have never seen a fig and that means nothing to me. I hit the 16 week mark tomorrow, it's so fun! I can't wait to feel it move, that will make things feel more real. And I haven't been sick for a week, so life is great!
Tanner has a med school interview in Ohio Sept. 1st, we're hoping to start hearing from more schools soon. School started again yesterday, Tanner was definitely more enthusiastic about it than I was, but he's right, it's exciting to be getting it done and over with. We're both graduating in May, only two more semesters to go! Summer just didn't feel long enough, but it'll be good to finish and be done! Good luck to everyone else starting school again!

A few things

2010-08-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

The new Hunger Games book comes out this month, I am soo excited! I need to reread the other two now.

Tanner scared me to death two nights ago. In the middle of the night he jumped to his feet on the bed, yelling that 'the spiders were going to get him, that they would get all the dragons, and surely eat right through his elbows.' Crazy, crazy Tanner. It took me a few minutes to calm him down enough to get him to lie back down and stop freaky sleep talking.

I go to the doctor Thursday and we are so excited to hear the heartbeat and for it to feel more real!

I'm so grateful for Tanner and how loving and wonderful he is.

Pregnancy really does make it harder to think straight. I find it's more difficult to find intelligent words, or real words for that matter, since the other night I told Tanner I got 'sticked,' instead of 'stuck.' At least I haven't been feeling too emotional lately, so when he laughs at me about it, I can laugh right along with him.

Busy Tanner

2010-08-01T08:55:00.000-07:00

Poor Tanner has been swamped this summer. We've had fun, but it has been so busy. He has been doing his research 40 hours a week, while trying to tackle all of the secondary applications for medical schools. We're not complaining, it's good that he's getting secondaries, but honestly, how many essays do they need for medical school? He wouldn't start until fall of next year, but we're hoping to have an idea of where we're going by the end of the year.

For those who have missed them, here is Tanner's latest sleep quote I can remember:

(I'm climbing into bed after going to the bathroom)

T: [starts speaking jibberish rather forcefully]

N: [giggles]

T: "I'm so excited for tomorrow to get here, I wish it would just come."

N: "Why?"

T: "Because I'm going to drain all the oranges of their juices. Mmmm."

N: "Oh, where are you going to get all these oranges?"

T: "From the, um, from the droopy thing. Yeah."

N: "Goodnight Tanner."

T: "Goodnight. You're so beautiful."

He makes me laugh, he's such a goofball. Last night before bed he asked me what I was most excited about for Christmas. We talked about the food, the family parties, and the snow. I love that once the year is halfway through, he can't stop preparing for Christmas. We are also already preparing for Halloween. Tanner is going to be a Steve Zahn character, the question is, should he be the Sahara guy, or That Thing You Do!? Decisions, decisions. Maybe we aren't as busy as I thought. But really, which one?

That Thing You Do

Sahara

Quick Update

2010-07-25T21:49:00.000-07:00

People keep asking how I'm doing, so I just wanted to say that I was pretty sick for a few weeks, but now I'm doing great. Just trying to eat healthy when I get hungry every two hours. :) I am due February 10th. Tanner is adorable and has already bought a crib, which he said he would just put the box in the baby room, but he got excited and put it together the night he bought it, it was so cute. I told him that he needed to stop though when he wanted to start buying baby swings and carseats, I love that man. I'm going to the doctor again in a couple weeks, I'll update more as things change! Thanks for all the congrats, we're feelin' the love!

Clayson Camp!

2010-07-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

Last week we took some time off work for Tanner's annual family camping trip to Tinney's Flat, up by Payson Lake. It was so nice to get away and we had so much fun! I realized as we were cleaning up to leave that Tanner and I hadn't taken any pictures together, so that's why you get this one here, Fullmers after a few days of no showering and no mirrors. That's one of my favorite things about camping.

Tanner had a HUGE fishing streak this trip, every time he put his pole in the water, a fish just grabbed right on. When we got home, we had a lot of fish to cook, but it was really yummy.

Noelle at Payson Lake, she was pooped.

Getting ready for the lake, she's so cute!

Tanner impressing me with his manliness by chopping firewood. It was hot, I'll admit it.
Noelle's sweet mohawk/mullet.
Tanner and Aly racing these little kid cars down a steep hill. Tanner crashed a couple times.

I just thought this was adorable, what a cute uncle.

He is so cute with Noelle, it makes me excited to see him as a Dad. Which, will be happening in February!! Yeps, the Fullmers are procreating. We are so, so excited!! Tanner announced it unexpectedly during one of the songs around the campfire, the night before we left. Everyone just stared at us for a minute, then they were all excited. Our families are almost as excited as we are, it's so fun. We'll keep ya'll updated as things progress!

Favorites for today....

2010-06-30T20:21:00.000-07:00

-Noelle's smile, she is oh so cute.

-Tanner's smell, it's so manly and wonderful. Sounds weird, but you know what I mean.

-Sleep. I can't get enough lately.

-My family. They really are the best, and I love them so much.

-Snuggling.

-The peace and the Spirit in our home. We have been good today and kept the tv off and just enjoyed the silence and talking to each other, it's been great.

-Camping. We're going in two weeks and are sooo excited!!

-Being so happy and grateful and just knowing that life is good.

Whoops..

2010-06-25T07:16:00.000-07:00

As I recapped over the past month, I forgot one huge event-we had our 3 year anniversary! I can't believe how fast it has gone by and how much fun we have together everyday. We sang our anniversary song we made up, which for some random reason is to the tune of "The First Noel." The chorus goes as follows:

'3 years, 3 years,

3 years, 3 yeeeeeaaaaarrs,

We have been ma-harried for-or 3 years.'

Pretty good eh? The rest of the lyrics must be made up on the spot. We were both working during the week, so we waited until Saturday to do something fun and we went with our friends Mike and Bree to Strawberry for a little fishin.' The only one Tanner caught got off the hook as he pulled it out of the water, and Mike caught one but it flipped itself back into the water. It was still a fun day and nice to get out and do something fun.

He really is so good to me and makes me laugh all the time. I couldn't ask for anyone better. Happy Anniversary Tanner, I love you so much!!

Good times

2010-06-23T21:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the crappy blogging this past month. A lot has been going on and I have been in a bit of a blog 'funk' if you will. So here are the major updates, or a few of them anyway. Here is the picture from Aly being home, isn't she gorgeous and amazing? It's so fun to have her home, I love it! If you aren't already married and have a best friend with a hot brother, marry him, I highly recommend it.
Tanner has put my degree to good use, I'm just glad I could contribute really. Please pretend to not see how dusty it is.

This was a really special day, we did Eric's endowment in May at the Bountiful Temple. The whole family went to the temple. Taylor is 14, so I stayed with her and we did baptisms, it was so great. It was an amazing experience and I'm so grateful we can do this wonderful work and I love my family!! We took lots of cute pictures with Noelle bug outside the temple before. Here is one of the few times you will see her running toward Tanner (he loves to tease, he that kind of uncle).

I love this little munchkin. She says my name now, but calls me "Nun." I actually got my name from my sister when she was a baby, she couldn't say Christina, so she said Nina. I didn't think that could be shortened, but I love it.
Thinking of sending this into a church magazine it's so cute.

Me and Tay afterwards, it was a great day!!